Miami offers more than football for fans

Friday

Jan 4, 2013 at 12:01 AM

If you’re headed all the way down the peninsula of Florida for Monday’s BCS National Championship Game between the Crimson Tide and Fighting Irish, you don’t have to know your way around the most heavily populated metropolitan area in the Southeastern U.S., as long as you stick with the University of Alabama’s National Alumni Association.

By Mark Hughes CobbStaff Writer

So you know about South Beach, and Little Havana, and the Keys just a short drive away, and um ... “Miami Vice.” If you’re headed all the way down the peninsula of Florida for Monday’s BCS National Championship Game between the Crimson Tide and Fighting Irish, you don’t have to know your way around the most heavily populated metropolitan area in the Southeastern U.S., as long as you stick with the University of Alabama’s National Alumni Association.For away games, the group helps traveling fans float in seas of crimson.“Alabama fans are always looking for places to gather,” said Ashley Clayton, tour coordinator and planner for the Alumni Association. “It’s not like in Tuscaloosa, where everyone knows about the Quad.“I think we’re similar to Ole Miss in that we’re an anomaly in tailgating: No one is pulling up in a truck and actually putting down the tailgate.”Miami and Fort Lauderdale alumni chapters help plan a couple of weekend events, and the actual tailgating party was down to what’s allowed by the Sun Life/Orange Bowl.From 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, there’s a happy hour event at the Clevelander, a recently renovated South Beach icon, centered in the Art Deco District, 1020 Ocean Drive. From 5-6 p.m., there’ll be a pep rally outside on Ocean Drive, from Sixth to Ninth Streets, with the Million Dollar Band, cheerleaders, Big Al, UA celebrities, live music, interactive games, championship trophy photo-ops and more.At 6 p.m. Sunday, the Broward County alumni chapter will hold a meet-up at the Quarterdeck Restaurant, 2933 E. Las Olas Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Monday the tailgate party will be 5:30 up until kickoff at 7:30 (8:30 p.m. Eastern Time), on the 100 level of the Sun Life Stadium. There will be a tailgate buffet, cash bar, door prizes and more. Any Bama fans, not just alumni, are welcome to contact the association at www.alumni.ua.edu or 205-348-5963 for travel tips.Fans at alumni events come from all walks, all ages, Clayton said, from the kids barely out of college looking to reconnect with friends to young families to retirees.“We try to be as inclusive as possible,” she said.Inclusive would be one way to describe the multicultural panorama of the Miami/Keys/Fort Lauderdale area. It’s the kind of place you can’t see all of in even a long weekend, and let’s face it, most folks are down for game time. But here are a few options for exploration, suggested by Time Out Miami and Miami.com.

Alabama Jacks: 58000 Card Sound Road, Key Largo. Call 305-248-8741. This laidback restaurant-bar just north of the Keys, open 11 a.m.-7 p.m. daily, is akin to a biker bar, but you can also order baskets of shrimp, conch fritters or ceviche.Boat tour of Star Island: Departs from Bayside Marketplace, 401 Biscayne Blvd. Miami. Call 305-379-5119 or visit www.islandqueencruises.com. There are 10 departures daily, 10:30 a.m.-7 p.m., of the 90-minute tours, past the Miami port, Fisher Island, Miami Beach marina and celebrity homes — including those of Gloria Estefan, Paulina Rubio and Sean “Diddy” Combs, and former residences of Liz Taylor and Sylvester Stallone — on Star Island. Tickets $26 adults, $18 for children 4 to 12, free for children younger than 3.Joe’s Stone Crab Restaurant: 11 Washington Ave., Miami Beach. Call 305-673-0365 or visit www.joesstonecrab.com. On the list of 1,000 things to do before you die, this eatery does not accept reservations; first-come, first-served only. Open for lunch 11 a.m.-2 p.m., dinner 5-11 p.m. Saturday, 5-10 p.m. Sunday and Monday.Miami Design Preservation League/Art Deco Welcome Center: 1001 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach. Call 305-672-2014 or visit www.mdpl.org. This is where you can find tours of the Art Deco district, or films, exhibits, books, posters and more on the historical architecture of the area. Guided walking tours begin at 10:30 a.m., for $20 each, $15 for seniors and students. A self-guided audio tour is also available, for $15 or $10.Vizcaya Museum and Gardens: 3251 S. Miami Ave., Miami. Call 305-250-9133 or visit www.vizcayamuseum.org Italian Renaissance-inspired villa and gardens on Biscayne Bay: For fans of the bizarre, this was built by agricultural industrialist James Deering as winter quarters in the early 20th century. It’s a National Historic Landmark, filled with art and furnishings, and 10 acres of bayfront gardens. Open 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. daily. Admission for adults is $15, admission for children 6 to 12 is $6, and children younger than 5 admitted free.The Forge Restaurant and Wine Bar: 432 41st St., Miami Beach. Call 305-538-8533 or visit www.theforge.com. Another iconic restaurant, but very upscale, with a 19th-century Parisian facade and rococo interior. It’s the kind of steak and fish place you might have once seen Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra or Richard Nixon wining and dining. Among its decadent wine selection is an 1822 Château Lafite Rothschild, asking price $150,000.

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